Partners promise performance and comfort benefits for sports bras
Material technology developed Rheon Labs has worked with elastic components specialist Stretchline to develop a new, adaptive strap for sports bras.
The companies said the new strap will offer a high level of support, but also comfort for everyday wear. They say the new straps will be easy for intimate apparel and activewear brands to integrate into their existing production set-ups.
Rheon Labs quoted studies that have found that more than 70% of women experience pain during exercise, partly because of bra straps. Excessive downward force from conventional bra straps can led to shoulder and back discomfort.
In tests, the new strap led to “breast bounce” stopping 55% faster than with a competitor product. After-bounce motion was reduced by 25%. Overall, the new strap delivered an improvement of more than 100% in absorbing movement and controlling bounce.
Its composition uses the Rheon “sensitive super-polymer”, which remains soft and flexible at rest but instantly stiffens under movement or force. In bra elastics and trims, the faster the stretch, the stronger the polymer reacts. According to Rheon Labs, this delivers “targeted support exactly where and when it is needed”.
This is incorporated into Stretchline’s Orbiknit elastic, which is engineered with a multi-directional knit structure to deliver what the manufacturer calls “smooth stretch and seamless recovery”. An edge-free design eliminates the discomfort of rigid strap edges.
